Page 61 of Doyle

"Yeah, well..." Doyle trailed off and suddenly looked serious. "Mayhem reported that a family from Maplewood reached out, asking for help. One of their sons went missing," Doyle said.

My heart sank hearing those words.

I’d been safe in my own little bubble, taking my time getting to know Doyle and the others—and sometimes conveniently choosing to forget that Morgan, Liliana, and the other black magic users were still out there.

The memories came flooding back, the cold, dark cell where they kept me, the constant fear, the pain.

I could still feel the weight of their control, the suffocating grip they had on my life.

I looked at Doyle, my heart pounding in my chest.

"Do you think it’s them?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

Doyle’s eyes softened as he looked at me.

"It’s possible. But we’ll find this missing shifter, Michael. We won’t let them hurt anyone else,” Doyle said.

“I believe you,” I told Doyle. “Just be careful, alright?”

“I will,” Doyle promised, planting another kiss on my mouth.

I was nervous as I pushed open the door to the diner where I was going to meet my dad.

It was silly. I was just meeting my dad, so there was no reason to be so anxious, but still, I wondered what he would think of my progress.

After taking a deep breath, I pushed open the diner door.

"Michael, over here," my dad called, waving from one of the window booths.

It appeared he had gotten there early. Waving back at him, I joined him. I noticed he had already ordered a cup of coffee.

He got up and pulled me into a bear hug.

When we both sat down, I could feel his eyes scrutinizing me.

"You look real good, Mike. You've been taking good care of yourself?" he asked. “You finally look like you’re eating right.”

"I feel good," I admitted.

"So what's good here?" my dad asked.

"I always order the double cheeseburger, onion rings, and chocolate milkshake," I said with a smile.

My dad chuckled. "Sounds like a solid choice,” he said.

We placed our orders, and as we waited, I asked, "So, how are you doing on your own, Dad?"

He sighed, taking a sip of his coffee. "It's been... different. Quiet, mostly. I miss having you around, but I'm managing. Business is steady, and I've been keeping busy,” he said.

"That's good to hear," I said. "I've been working on something too. Here, let me show you."

I pulled out my phone and navigated to the website I had been building for Doyle.

My dad leaned in, curiosity in his eyes. "Let's see what you've got,” he said.

I handed him my phone, and he scrolled through the site.

"Wow, Mike. This is impressive. I knew you were interested in that sort of thing, even in the past,” he said.

---